that was quite an interesting story, if you can call it to mind,"
said the gentleman, rising.

"It was in a book of travels in Africa," the lady went on. "The
traveller, whose name was Le Vaillant, took Kees through all his
journey, and the creature really made himself very useful. As a
sentinel, he was better than any of the dogs. Indeed, so quick was his
sense of danger, that he often gave notice of the approach of beasts of
prey, when every thing was apparently secure.

"There was another way in which Kees made himself useful. Whenever they
came across any fruits or roots with which the Hottentots were
unacquainted, they waited to see whether Kees would taste them. If he
threw them down, the traveller concluded they were poisonous or
disagreeable, and left them untasted.

"Le Vaillant used to hunt, and frequently took Kees with him on these
excursions. The poor fellow understood the preparations making for the
sport, and when his master signified his consent that he should go, he
showed his joy in the most lively manner. On the way, he would dance
about, and then run up into the trees to search for gum, of which he was
very fond.

"I recall one amusing trick of Kees," said the lady, laughing, "which
pleased me much when I read it. He sometimes found honey in the hollows
of trees, and also a kind of root of which he was very fond, both of
which his master insisted on sharing with him. On such occasions, he
would run away with his treasure, or hide it in his pouches, or eat it
as fast as possible, before Le Vaillant could have time to reach him.

"These roots were very difficult to pull from the ground. Kees' manner
of doing it was this. He would seize the top of the root with his strong
teeth, and then, planting himself firmly against the sod, drew himself
gradually back, which forced it from the earth. If it proved stubborn,
while he still held it in his teeth he threw himself heels over head,
which gave such a concussion to the root that it never failed to come
out.

"Another habit that Kees had was very curious. He sometimes grew tired
with the long marches, and then he would jump on the back of one of the
dogs, and oblige it to carry him whole hours. At last the dogs grew
weary of this, and one of them determined not to be pressed into
service. He now adopted an ingenious artifice. As soon as Kees leaped on
his back, he stood still, and let the train pass without moving from the
spot. Kees sat quiet, deter